Get Better

Let’s allow our students to get better. Let’s really build a foundation of knowledge and skills for our students so that they can take over one day when we’re all gone. 

How do we do this as teachers (or parents, politicians, leaders, peers)?

Options. We need to give our students options for their futures; we need to let them know their opportunities in this world are infinite, not limited to a four-year college, diploma, and a 40 hour a week job with nice car and home in the 21st century. And therein lies the solution or perhaps the problem.

The 21st century. We have access to infinite information at the push and click of a few buttons, but yet students still are exploring only a small of that technology: social media.

It is sad that through social media people are bombarded with EVEN MORE advertisements and images contrary to reality. Pics of models that are unreasonably thin, cologne commercials that guarantee late nights with a woman, diets that shed fat, and the list goes on and on. 

So using this medium for its own sake but because it can show students’ learning in novel ways is crucial. Creating tumblr blogs for classroom discussion, news, research, and assignments is an excellent way to model smart learning and independent learning. 

The beauty of this access to information is astounding, which means ignorance is no longer an excuse. If you can’t afford access to the internet or have a computer your public library has got you covered. Don’t have a car to get there? Public transportation almost always stops at or at least near libraries. Don’t have the time? Libraries open early and close late, especially in college towns. 

I am so drawn to “Get Better” because it’s smart. 

"You can build your time better when you find a passion. The Internet and Public Services gives free education. So it really ain’t a case of rich or poor, it’s a case of self-motivation and nothing more." 

Courtesy of
Wikimedia Commons

Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote: “Your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.” It takes not only smart teaching to change the lives of our students, but the action to back it up. Action from teachers, parents, politicians, everyone.